Individualized physical training in the therapy of Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia – A case report

BACKGROUND: Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD) is an autosomal recessive disease, characterized by ciliary dysfunction and impaired mucociliary clearance. Previous studies have indicated a low physical fitness in PCD patients but currently it is not known whether physical training beneficially affects fitness, inflammatory markers and quality of life. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was a Caucasian male (67.0 kg, 183.3 cm), born in 1984 and was diagnosed with the Kartagener Syndrome (i.e. PCD) right after birth. He was prescribed structured physical training over a period of almost two years (from August 2017–June 2019) and was assessed regularly. Aerobic fitness improved throughout the intervention period, but no systematic changes were observed in inflammatory markers and overall quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Our data provides reasoning to stress the implementation of structured physical training to enhance physical performance also in the management of PCD.